


Picking Up The Pieces

by Bookwitch



Category: SSX Tricky
Genre: Abduction, Aftermath of Torture, Angst, Anxiety, Assault, Dissociation, Flashbacks, Gen, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Torture, Nightmares, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Past Rape/Non-con, Past Sexual Assault, Past Torture, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Psychological Drama, Psychological Torture, Psychological Trauma, Sexual Violence, Snowed In, Stalking, Strained Friendships, Trauma
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-30
Updated: 2016-07-02
Packaged: 2018-05-30 03:30:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 8,544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6406882
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bookwitch/pseuds/Bookwitch
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eddie is not quite sure how to act around Brodi after the recent traumas of Brodi's past have been revealed. Set in time after the events of Ashes to Ashes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Eddie had just finished his last practice run of the day. He had thoroughly exhausted himself, much to his satisfaction, and was looking forward to a hot shower, an hour or so of playing around on the internet, then making his way to The Gravitude later to see who was hanging out. He was so heavily into his thoughts about plans for the evening that he didn't see Brodi at all on the stairs until he had run smack into him.

"Whoa, there,!" Brodi laughed as he steadied himself and reached out a hand to keep Eddie from falling backwards. "You OK, dude?"

Eddie blanched a bit as he looked up at Brodi. "Oh, hey, Bro. I'm good. Er, sorry about that. Guess my head's still on the practice."

Brodi nodded. "No problem. Hey, Elise and I are meeting Zoe, Moby, and Kaori for dinner later. Care to join?"

"Fraid I'll have to take a rain check, Brodi." Eddie responded, perhaps a bit too quickly. "I think I'm just going to head to bed early tonight. Thanks for the invite, though."

"All right, man. Well, the invitation's open if you change your mind. We're meeting around 7, and I think we've decided on the new Greek restaurant downtown."

Eddie nodded then pushed past Brodi and made his way up the stairs. He didn't have to have eyes in the back of his head to know that Brodi was still standing at the foot of the stairs, still looking at him with a concerned look on his face. The surfer would never say so, but Eddie knew he'd been a lousy friend as of late. Ever since the Lauryll incident, Eddie had been uncomfortable around Brodi. It was nothing Brodi had done. In fact, Eddie couldn't place his finger on it, exactly, so he just avoided the man altogether when he could. Yes, it stunk that this was his reaction when Brodi probably needed things to get back to normal, but...

"Still playing chicken, Fuzzy?"

Eddie stopped and turned around to find Psymon leaning against the wall right behind him. Damn, how did he DO that?

"Beg your pardon, Sketchy?"

Psymon crossed his arms and narrowed his gaze. "It's Brodi's pardon you need to be beggin'. You're supposed to be his best friend. Don't think people haven't noticed you run the other way any time he walks into a room."

Eddie's face grew hot, and he felt embarrassed. Then he felt angry that he was embarrassed, and even angrier that Psymon Stark had been the one to point out to him what he was already feeling guilty about.

"I AM his best friend. I've just been busy. And so has he. Besides, he's got Elise..."

"Jealous?" Psymon sneered as he pushed himself away from the wall and took a step towards Eddie. He stopped and leaned in a couple of inches from Eddie's face. "I somehow doubt Bombshell is the problem here. Look, I don't give a rat's ass one way or another. But I do know that after what Zen has been through the last two or three months, he deserves to have friends who support him, or at least are willing to get him drunk so he can forget it. And if this is the way you treat friends, he DEFINITELY deserves better than he's getting."


	2. Hide

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eddie tries to forget what just happened, but others are having none of that.

Psymon stormed off before Eddie could come up with a suitable reply. He walked on to his room deep in thought. Once inside, he locked the door behind him and turned on the lava lamp, hoping that maybe the floating purple and orange globs would settle his headache. When that didn't work, he hopped into a steaming shower, where he spent most of the time watching the water run down the drain. When he'd finally had enough of that, he toweled himself off and pulled on the loudest pajamas he could find. He was just firing up his laptop when he heard a knock at the door.

"What NOW?" he grumbled as he yanked the door open. "Oh. Kaori!"

The tiny Japanese teenager looked nervous. "Uhm, hi, Eddie. I saw Brodi in the lounge. He said he'd invited you to dinner with us and you declined."

"I did."

"Will you reconsider?"

"Kay, I'm really tired tonight. I plan to..."

"Why are you avoiding Brodi?"

Eddie's face grew hot again. "I am NOT avoiding him. Why does everyone keep saying that?"

"Can I come in? Just for a minute? I don't think we should discuss this in the hall."

Eddie sighed and stood aside to let Kaori in.

"I don't want to be rude, Kaori, but...WHAT?"

This time it was Kaori who sighed. "When Brodi was in the hospital, do you remember how afraid I was to go into his room?"

Eddie nodded.

"As much as I can't stand Psymon-he helped me overcome my fear."

"Yeah, by dragging you down the hall by your arm and pinning you to the wall outside Brodi's hospital room."

Kaori nodded. "His methods were rough, true. But it was what he said to me that matters. He pointed out that a true friend doesn't avoid someone because a situation might be outside your comfort level."

"I told you I am NOT avoiding him!"

"You once would hang out with him all the time. Now you will barely sit in the same room with him."

"That's not..."

"It is true. And you know it is, or you would not be so defensive. Especially when we were discussing my experience and I had not related it to you yet."

Eddie opened his mouth to say something, then realized he couldn't really answer to her comment. Seeing his defeat, Kaori headed towards the door.

"So will you join us for dinner? I think it will be good for Brodi if things return to normal as quickly as possible."

Eddie wasn't sure things could return to normal, but he said nothing to that effect. However, his hesitation seemed enough for Kaori.

"I see." she said quietly. "Well, at least think about what I said.

She left without giving him an opportunity to answer.


	3. Keep Knocking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kaori no sooner leaves Eddie's room than there is another knock at the door. NOW what?

Not five minutes had passed before there was another knock at the door. He considered not answering it, but if it was Kaori she already knew he was home. The prospect of another lecture made him angry all over again, and he stomped over to the door and yanked it open.

"I've already said no, for crying out lou...oh, hi, Brodi."

"It's a bit late in the day for salesmen, don't you think?" said a slightly bemused Brodi.

"Oh, sorry about that, dude. I thought you were someone else."

"I'd ask who, but from that reaction I doubt I want to know. You, ah, mind if I come in?"

"Brodi, if it's about earlier, I said I was sorry."

"It's not. But it's OK if you're not up for company. Look, dinner invite still stands. Otherwise I'll see you around, OK?"

Brodi started back down the hall towards his room. Eddie watched him going, and he felt lousier and slimier with each step Brodi took. Finally, he caved.

"Brodi, wait."

Brodi turned around and gave him a quizzical look. "Yes, Eddie?"

"Come on in."

"I don't want to..."

"Get in here before I change my mind again."

Eddie walked back into his room and left the door open as an invitation. After a moment Brodi walked in and closed the door behind him.

Brodi took a chair while Eddie flopped across his bed.

"Look," Eddie began, "I know things have been weird between us lately. Still, regardless of what anyone thinks, I took a rain check on the dinner because I worked my ass off today in practice and I'm exhausted. Truthfully."

Brodi shrugged. "Think nothing of it. I'm not offended."

Eddie sighed. "Yeah? Well maybe you should be."

Brodi leaned forward in his chair, resting his elbows on his knees and clasping his hands in front of him. "Why is that?" he asked quietly.

"Because I've been a lousy friend. " Eddie sat up so he could face Brodi eye to eye. "It's been pointed out to me that I've been avoiding you. Truth is, I have. I wasn't even aware of it at first. It's just...well, I knew that Elise has been taking care of you. And dude, I haven't been sure how to treat you since that whole Lauryll incident. So, when I realized Elise was stepping up to the plate, I removed myself from the equation. It was a lousy thing to do, and I'm sorry."

Brodi tilted his head to one side and looked at Eddie in silence for a moment.

"Eddie," he finally began, after what seemed like years, "I appreciate your honesty. But, dude, I'm going to tell you exactly what I told Rahzel. I am no different now than I was last week or a month ago, before any of you knew anything about what happened to me in college. The only difference is your perception. I don't need taken care of any more than I did before. I haven't suddenly become an infant. I certainly don't need constant babysitting, though I'm beginning to wonder if it's not becoming a self fulfilling prophecy. It all went down in a very public way, and people just don't know what to say. They're uncomfortable, I get uncomfortable. Hell, I've been avoiding people myself, and that's the exact opposite of what needs to be happening."

Eddie pinched the bridge of his nose between his eyes. Man, was he getting a headache.

"I know. And I am truly sorry for my part in it. But, Brodi, why did you not mention it before? That's kind of a major event, my man."

Brodi shrugged good-naturedly. "I try to leave the past in the past. I lived through it. I healed, I moved on. It's the Buddhist in me. What can I say?"

Eddie sighed again and looked back up. "I just think I'd have a harder time keeping it a secret. And this one didn't stay in the past, now, did it?"

"Ah, so that's it."

Eddie glared. "What's it?"

"I wasn't intentionally keeping anything secret, Eddie. It just wasn't relevant. I try to not let what happened define me."

Eddie stood and began to pace. "Yeah, but her showing up again sure messed you up. THAT makes it pretty damned relevant, don't you think? Brodi, you dropped out of sight. You got drunk. DRUNK. You don't drink, or do I need to remind you about that? If that wasn't bad enough, with all the rumors floating around, neither Atomika nor Rahzel were forthcoming with any information."

"Eddie, they were only trying to..."

"No information. Zip. You know the last time those two were so tight-lipped about something that involved any of us? It was your accident, buddy, and you almost DIED. I almost lost my best friend. We almost lost you. Twice. I had no idea then what was going on. And I didn't this time either. How am I supposed to be your friend, dude, if I'm kept in the dark. And them trying to protect your privacy? This place is like junior high. Total silence is just gasoline on a forest fire when it comes to rumors. And do you want to hear about those rumors? 

"I'm guessing you're going to tell me." 

"There's talk of your having violent nightmares, of having PTSD, of being more than a little unhinged. Meanwhile, I've still been told NOTHING. How am I supposed to know what to do if I'm the only one around you and you flip out? I wouldn't be able to keep you safe because I don't know WHAT'S GOING ON. So yeah, I guess at this point I'd rather stay in the dark."

Eddie froze as the words left his mouth, realizing their cruelty but knowing it was too late to retract.

"Geez, Brodi, I'm sorry. I didn't mean..."

Brodi lifted his hand calmly. "No, don't worry about it. I get it. I understand." 

Eddie jumped up and took a step towards Brodi, hand outstretched for him. Brodi scooted away from him in the chair then stood with a calm that was almost eerie, even coming from the Zen Master. He walked to the door, hesitating as he rested his hand on the door knob. As he turned, his jaw was tight, but he spoke softly.

"Eddie, I was drugged, kidnapped, and assaulted in several torturous ways. For three days. Three days handcuffed to a bed, living a hell of drugs and pain so heavy I didn't know where I was or half the time even who I was. I was beaten, raped, cut, burned with cigarettes, given electric shocks. Every time they would inject me with something I never knew if I would wake up from it. I never knew if I was going to make it through the torture seasons. You say there are rumors of my being unhinged? You really have no idea. All of that happened ten years ago, and it has taken ten years of various combinations of therapy, meditation, and spiritual healing for me to even be comfortable in my own skin again. I'm sorry you felt slighted, but I truly had finally gotten to the point where I could put it to rest. It honestly, truly was not RELEVANT. I was not trying to keep a secret. That Lauryll decided to show up now was a fluke, but it showed me that I'm not necessarily done healing."

"Brodi, please..."

He turned to leave, then stopped again. This time he spoke without turning around.

"I now know why so many crime victims don't want it known that they were victimized at all. It was nice, for a while, to have a set of friends who knew me for me, and not as some freak male who managed to get himself mickeyed and violated. I do still value our friendship, Eddie, but I don't want to make you uncomfortable, and I certainly don't want you to be afraid of me. Maybe we'll be able to hang out again soon. You...Just let me know when you're comfortable."

"Brodi, I really didn't mean..."

The door shut, and Eddie found himself talking to the door. He groaned and threw himself down on the bed.

"Just like I planned it. Only BAD."


	4. Back To Normal...Maybe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eddie cannot concentrate in his room, so he heads for the central common room.

Eddie stood there in the middle of his bedroom, stunned. 

"Way to knock that one out of the park, Wachowski."

He knew that replaying the scene over in his head was going to be pointless. He tried to play around on the internet and immerse his attention into something other than his seemingly ruined friendship, but he couldn't get interested in anything. Finally deciding that maybe it was the leftover bad vibes from the discussion, he picked up his computer and took to the lounge in front of the fireplace. He made a mental note of the time so he could be sure to disappear before the dinner party started gathering. Arguing with his friends one at a time was bad enough, but he didn't need to feel like he was crossing several of them at once. So he sat at the fireplace, just a boy and his laptop, but so far had managed to be only minimally interested in the website he was perusing. He was, however, apparently absorbed enough that he didn't notice Elise walk up and sit beside him on the couch. She said nothing, just leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees.

"If you're here to talk about Brodi," he grumped when he finally noticed her, "I've already talked to him. And I'm sick of people reminding me what a lousy friend I've been."

"I'm not," she said softly, still staring straight ahead. "And I know you talked to him. I saw him leaving your room earlier. I came to see how you were doing."

"Look, I said I've already...what did you say?"

Elise looked at him for the first time. "You're not the only one who hasn't been winning any friendship awards. I've spent almost all of my time with Brodi. I haven't hung out with anyone else."

"Yeah, well," Eddie said glumly, "Not for lack of trying. I've been asked to hang out with you guys. I just keep bailing on you."

"Yeah, I know."

Eddie glared at her.

"Oh, come on. You know what I mean. Anyway, it's beside the point. Look, we almost lost Brodi. Twice. And I got so wrapped up in all the emergencies and being freaked out myself that I never noticed how you were dealing with everything. I mean, he's your friend, too. He's everyone's friend, not just mine. I've kind of monopolized him lately."

"You're his girlfriend. That's a little different."

Elise blushed. "We're not..."

Eddie laughed as he shut his laptop down. "Don't tell me you two haven't had The Talk. Or are you both still in denial?"

Elise just looked at him blankly.

"Elise, Brodi Ford has been crazy about you since the day he met you and you followed him back to his room harassing him because he smoked your ass on Garibaldi. You two just, I don't know, WORK together.

"We're really just..."

"Yeah, yeah." Eddie chuckled as he clicked his laptop closed. "You haven't noticed the way he looks at you?"

"Not really."

"You. Haven't. Noticed." Eddie looked at her, dumbfounded. "Girl, are you for REAL?"

"Well..."

"Or how about the fact that he seems to lose about 20 IQ points when you're around because he can't concentrate on anything?"

"You don't think..."

"Then how about this: you genuinely came over here to see how I was doing, and we wind up talking about Brodi anyway?"

Elise sat back, stunned. "Oh my God."

Eddie grinned triumphantly. "How about dinner, Elise? We'll be here all night otherwise...I can give you a thousand examples with regards to you and Brodi."

Elise still looked stunned. "Uh..sure. What are you in the mood for?"

Eddie tried to hide his smirk. Yeah, maybe it was going to take a while for things to get back to normal, whatever that was. In the meantime, how would Brodi put it? The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. 

"How about Greek? I hear there's a new restaurant downtown and a few riders were going to check it out."

If Brodi felt really uncomfortable with him there, he would just leave and maybe try again later. For now, he would go get dressed and prepare to meet them in the lobby.


	5. Chapter 5

Brodi stepped out of the shower and toweled himself off. The shower had calmed him down a bit, but his mind was still swimming with an overload of emotions. He kept reminding himself that getting together with everyone was a good idea. He needed to stop isolating himself. When had that started? He supposed it didn't matter as long as it stopped. His friends were trying to be there for him. He needed to let them.

_I guess at this point I'd rather just stay in the dark._

The words stung even though Brodi knew Eddie didn't mean what he had said. It was one of those things said in the heat of the moment. The look on Eddie's face when the man realized what he'd said said volumes more than the words themselves did. He didn't mean what he had said.

Brodi sighed and reminded himself to get moving. Walking out of the bathroom, he intended to start getting dressed but wound up just sitting on his bed staring at his hands. That should have been his first clue that he was starting to lose his grip on the now. It was a clue he missed.

_When I realized Elise was stepping up to the plate, I removed myself from the equation._

What equation, Brodi wondered. More like he just removed himself from Brodi's life. He and Eddie had been instant best friends when they first met. They had met at the same pre game event where Brodi had met Elise. He had met two of the most important people in his life that day. And now? Years later, one seemed to be afraid of him and the other one he feared he was running into an early grave.

Had things really gotten so far out of hand? The last few months had been one crisis after another. He wasn't handling things as well as he once did. Hell, even fresh out of the initial trauma he wasn't THIS bad. Was he? Once his body healed from the torture that had been inflicted on him, he had very few problems. There was the occasional nightmare, but even those subsided after he transferred schools. Some things had changed. He always had to sit where no one could be behind him, especially if he was alone. He was often hyperalert, rarely slept deeply and when he did sleep, then the nightmares took over. The lack of sleep made him jumpier than he otherwise would have been. He just couldn't handle large crowds right now. But this would be small. A few close friends. A few people he trusted. New restaurant, middle of the week. It wouldn't be crowded. Would it? No, it shouldn't be. He'd be OK. He'd be OK. Maybe if he kept telling himself that it would be true.

A knock at the door brought him back around to himself and he realized he'd made no progress in getting dressed.

"Just a sec..." he called while hastily throwing his pants on. There was a second knock by the time he got to the door. "Hang on. Hang on." He yanked the door open to see Elise about to knock again. "Oh, hi, Elise." 

"Are you OK? I was about to barge on in."

Brodi stood aside to let her enter, then closed the door behind her. "I don't know why you don't just come in anyway. I gave you my spare key for a reason." He turned around and took her into his arms, surprising her with a kiss. She gave in to it for a moment then pulled back slightly, resting her arms on his shoulders as she looked him over.

"I don't want to abuse the privilege. Now, are you OK?"

"Elise, I answered on your second knock."

She shook her head. "No, sweetie. I'd been knocking for a while. I didn't come in immediately because I thought maybe you were still in the shower, perhaps that was what was taking so long. Then I realized the time and got worried."

"Are the others waiting on us?"

Elise shook her head. "That storm that was supposed to hit about 3am? It's making an early appearance. The roads aren't terrible yet, but we're essentially grounded." She threw her arms around him and kissed his cheek before pulling back. "I'm sorry, babe. I know you were looking forward to it."

"It'll happen again. We've just got to give it time. I've got good friends."

"Yes, you do." Elise said as she nudged him back towards the bed, then straddled him and started crawling forward as he leaned back on the pillows.

"Everyone else has headed to The Gravitude," she said quietly, leaning in close to him and giving him a soft kiss. "We could meet them there," she paused for another kiss, this one a little more lingering. " or we could" another kiss, "just" and another, "stay in for the night."

Brodi grinned up at her for a brief second, resting his hands on her hips as she sat astride him, before he leaned up towards her for another kiss. She didn't pull back from this one and she groaned as he reflexively bucked his hips, pressing into her.

"Stay in it is," she whispered when he let her come up for air.


	6. Chapter 6

Eddie walked into The Gravitude and looked around nervously for his friends. Kaori saw him before he saw her and surprised him with a squealing hug.

"I knew you would come around! Come, we are seated close to the back. Brodi is not yet here, but he will be happy to see you, I'm certain."

Eddie let himself be led to the table by the exuberant teen. "Elise was going to tell him the storm had moved in earlier than expected and that we were meeting here." He explained to her as they approached the table.  
"I'm sure they won't be long."

"Unless they get their own party going," Moby offered as he sat, reaching across the table to shake Eddie's hand. "Glad you could make it, mate."

"I went ahead and ordered appetizers for all of us," Zoe stated, not bothering to say hi. "And the waitress will be bringing a couple of pitchers of house ale. If you want something special you're on your own."

The gang got in to swapping stories of their latest competitions, and it all seemed to go by quickly when the appetizers and ale arrived. The spinach and artichoke dip and two orders of mozzarella sticks had been demolished before anyone notice that neither Brodi nor Elise had arrived. 

"Should we check on them?" Kaori asked innocently. Moby laughed out loud.

"No, they probably just decided to stay in for the night."

"Perhaps one of us should take them food?" Kaori offered.

"Uhm, Kay, I don't think food is exactly what's in their minds." Eddie tried to hint as delicately as possible, but realized he'd failed miserably when Kaori turned as red as the marinara sauce.

"Oh." She exclaimed. 

Moby snickered and Zoe kicked him for it.

Eddie was about to say something else when a rattled looking Nate walked up to them.

"Nate! Pull up a chair!"

"Maybe later, Zoe. Eddie, can I borrow you for a while?"

"Uh, sure. Just let me..."

"We got this one, mate." Moby said, catching the concerned look on Nate's face and realizing something was very wrong. "Go on, off you go. You can get the next group dinner."

Eddie nodded and without further word followed Nate to the exit.


	7. Chapter 7

"Nate, wait up! What's the hurry?" Eddie hurried to catch up with Nate, succeeding only because the man had stopped to wait for an elevator. "What's going on?"

"Brodi needs help." He said matter of factly. 

Eddie hesitated. "What kind of...help?"

Nate looked at him for the first time, and though the man was hard to read, Eddie was sure he saw anger there.

The elevator doors opened before Nate answered, and Nate merely gestured into the elevator. Eddie stepped into the elevator, followed closely by Nate. The larger man hit the button for the third floor then leaned into the back wall of the elevator, crossing his arms and glaring at Eddie.

"OK. You're freaking me out, my man. Tell me what is going on."

"Did Brodi seem, I don't know, off to you when you spoke with him earlier?"

"Does EVERYONE know he came to my room? Christ. Yes, he was a little off. I knew he wanted to try to close the gap that's come between us lately. Came to invite me for dinner. I'd declined earlier."

"And...?"

"And I started apologizing for not being around lately. It turned into me getting defensive and grilling him about recent events. And then...." 

"Then....?" Nate asked, just as the elevator stopped on the third floor. 

They stepped out into the hall and started walking towards Brodi's room. Eddie thought briefly that they would reach their destination before he had to continue the conversation. The relief was short lived, though, as Nate suddenly grabbed him by the shoulders and pushed him against the wall.

"And then...." he repeated, face tight in anger stopping just a couple of inches from Eddie's face. 

"And then...then I said some things I shouldn't have."

Nate grabbed Eddie's collar and held him in place.

"Things like..."

"Look, can we just go see Brodi? I'm sure he'll tell you he's fine."

Nate let go of Eddie's shirt, and for an intolerable moment looked like he was going to throw a punch. Instead he pushed himself back and walked a few steps away. When he turned back to face Eddie, his expression was back to being unreadable.

"Oh, you think he's going to tell you he's fine, do you?"

"For God's sake, Nate. Will you tell me what's going on?"

"Oh, I'll do you one better than that." He grabbed Eddie's arm and pulled him down the hall. Eddie had pulled his arm free by the time they reached the end of the hall, and turned to the left before Nate had time to give him any more guidance. Three doors from the end of that hall and they stopped. Nate gave a few quick raps on the door to announce them.

"It's me, princess." He called out. There was no answer, but Eddie heard the door unlock. An anxious looking Elise cracked the door open and peered out, then opened the door and stood aside to let them in.

"Now, Eddie, " Nate said quietly but angrily, "you were saying?"


	8. Chapter 8

Eddie stepped into the room and was stunned to see Brodi sitting in his armchair with the resort doc standing over him taking his blood pressure. Elise walked over to him and knelt in front of him, taking his free hand in hers.

"Well, my friend." Dr. Pierce said as he removed the stethoscope from his ears. "Your blood pressure is good. Your heart rate is still a little high, but it seems to be coming down. I'm going to start packing up, and I'll check you one more time before I leave. You just sit right there and relax for a bit, OK?"

If Brodi heard the man speak, he didn't acknowledge it.

"Hey, sweetie." Elise said softly. "Can you hear me?"

"Mmhmm..." He responded.

"That's good. How do you feel?"

"I..." He paused, and Eddie was beginning to wonder if he'd fallen asleep. He wanted to keep his eye on Brodi, but he was also straining to hear the conversation Nate and Pierce were having quietly in the corner. He finally gave up and focused on Brodi. He'd have to grill Nate later.

He was about to prompt Brodi himself when Elise spoke up.

"Brodi?" 

"I...uhm, I'm...did I hurt you?" He sat up suddenly, and Eddie moved forward to help Elise, but she held up a hand to signal him to stay back.

"No, honey. I'm fine. You had a nightmare." She gently but firmly pushed him back down. "You had a really bad nightmare and you slipped away for a bit. But you came back to us." She stood and patted herself for emphasis. "See? I'm fine. Nothing to worry about. Now, you just sit tight and let us worry about you, OK. I'm going to straighten up the bed so you can lay back down."

Elise nodded to Eddie as she stepped over to the bed and pushed the mattress back into place and started straightening the bed clothes. Eddie moved out of her way and knelt beside Brodi's chair. 

"Hey, my man. " He said gently, waiting for Brodi to acknowledge him before he touched him. Once Brodi made eye contact, Eddie rested a hand on top of Brodi's. "How you feelin'?"

"Eddie? " He looked momentarily surprised, but then seemed to relax. "I...I didn't know you were here. "

"Just got here, buddy. "

"Oh." Then, "I'm glad you're here. I need to...need to talk..to you. "

Eddie frowned and caught Elise's eye but she merely shrugged. He thought Brodi was starting to slur his words, but reasoned that Pierce must have given Brodi something to calm him. He forced a smile and lifted Brodi's hand in his. 

"We'll talk, but that can wait. But right now what's important is that you're safe and we're taking care of you."

Brodi nodded and closed his eyes. Eddie thought he might have fallen asleep when suddenly his eyes snapped open again. Without warning he was on the move. He stood so quickly that Eddie was knocked on his ass. Elise reached for him but clearly in his panicked state he saw not a friend but a threat. Before Eddie could even wrap his head around what was going on, Nate had approached Brodi in a failed attempt to calm him down. The result was that Nate now had a screaming, struggling Brodi pinned to his own bed. Eddie looked on in awe of the scene unfolding in front of him, and his words from earlier came back to haunt him.

_I'd rather just stay in the dark._

Self fulfilling prophecy indeed.


	9. Chapter 9

As soon as Dr. Pierce stepped away from his patient, Nate cornered him.

"Thanks for coming up here so quickly." Nate offered. 

"Well, the weather actually worked in your favor there. I was going out of town this weekend, cancelled at the last minute." Pierce looked back at where Brodi was sitting. "He's had a tough time these past few months. I'm glad I was here too."

"How is he?"

"He really should be evaluated at the hospital behavioral unit. But, since this snow storm is well under way, we'll have to settle for the bandaid approach at the moment. Elise called his therapist, and after conferring with her I gave him a mild sedative. I've taken his vitals a couple more times, and I'm going to administer a heavier one before I leave."

Nate raised an eyebrow. "Do you think that's necessary? He seems pretty calm right now. You keep that stuff around?"

Pierce raised his hands in protest. "This is a family resort. Ever try to stitch up an 11yo who got too ballsy for his own good on the half pipe? It's called procedural sedation."

Nate sighed. "I didn't mean that accusatory. It's just...well, you've treated him for injuries before. Ever try to get him to take so much as an aspirin?"

"Point taken. But would you rather risk him in a severe dissociative state hurting himself or someone else, or getting outside and getting lost in this snowstorm? I'd rather err on the side of caution."

Nate was about to protest again when a sudden movement caught his eye. Brodi had gone from looking like he was falling asleep to standing in a defensive position, moving so quickly he had knocked Eddie on his ass. He similarly seemed to see Elise as a threat, so Nate moved quickly to get between them.

"Brodi, what's going on, buddy?"

"Why are you doing this? Please, just let me go."

Nate raised his hands, palm out, in what he hoped was a nonthreatening manner. "Brodi, we're trying to help you. I know it's been a frightening day but you're safe. Why don't you sit down and let the doctor..."

Too late. Nate had clearly missed a cue somewhere and he reached out and touched Brodi's arm without thinking. He was intending to guide the distraught man back to the chair, but the simple gesture only served to heighten his distress. He took a swing at Nate, and Nate's military training kicked in. He deflected the punch, catching Brodi's wrist and pulling it behind him. Quickly he circled Brodi's waist and grabbed Brodi's free arm, pulling it tight against his body. 

"Let me go!" Brodi screamed. He was in a full panic now. He tried to pull himself free and Nate, fearing the exact scenario the doctor had just described, knew he had to do something before he lost his grip or hurt Brodi himself.

"God, I am so sorry about this, buddy." he said before he maneuvered his body into a position to push Brodi down onto the bed and pin him face down. "Doc, whatever you had planned, you need to do it quickly!" he yelled.

"This needs to go into a large muscle group. It's strong stuff." 

"The man is one large muscle group. Pick a spot and hit it. I don't want to hurt him." Then, to the others, "One of you guys want to lend a hand? Hurry, the longer this goes on, the worse it's going to get."

Finally Elise spurred into action. "OK, I'm going to lean over you, Nate. Pierce, left thigh. Hand me an alcohol swab, I'll wipe, you stab."

Nate managed to swing a leg over Brodi's calf to hold it still. Elise pushed the edge of Brodi's shorts up with one hand and swabbed with the other, moving her hand just as Pierce hit the muscle group he was aiming for and carefully unloaded the contents of the syringe into it. Brodi tensed and groaned, then immediately started sobbing.

"Why is this happening to me?" He yelled through his sobs. "What did I do wrong? What did I do? Please, no more. No more no more no more."

"You didn't do anything wrong, Brodi. You didn't do anything wrong. " Nate soothed, trying to be as gentle as he possibly could while holding the man still . 

Brodi struggled a little more, but within a minute or so the stuff was starting to take hold. Nate slowly released his grip on him and, once he saw the danger had passed, rolled him onto his side, lifting his head enough to allow Elise to position a pillow under his head. Brodi looked at him with a cloudy gaze but said nothing. Nate reached over and wiped away one of Brodi's tears with his thumb, then he started to get up. He looked back when Brodi grabbed his hand.

"I...uhm, I..." 

"It's OK, Brodi. Don't fight it. You can let go. I'm going to be right here if you need me. I promise."

Brodi seemed to accept that and closed his eyes. Eventually the medicine took its full effect and his hand loosened its grip on Nate's wrist. Only then did Nate look around the room. The glum looking doctor was packing up his supplies, Elise had curled up beside Brodi and was lightly stroking his hair, and Eddie...well, Eddie remained seated on the floor where he had fallen earlier.

Yep. This had been one hell of a day. And it was turning into one hell of a night.


	10. Chapter 10

"Hey, pal, you OK?"

"Huh?"

Eddie shook himself out of his own thoughts to see Nate squatting in front of him looking concerned. 

"You OK? Come on, let's get you out of the floor. "

Eddie looked around the room at where the chaos had come to rest. Elise was sitting on Brodi's bed holding Brodi's hand and stroking his hair. Pierce was busy taking the man's vitals again, and here he was, still sitting on the floor. 

"Eddie?"

Nate held his hand out and looked at him pointedly. 

"Oh. Yeah Sorry. " He took Nate's hand and allowed the man to pull him up. Nate steered him to the chair and pushed him gently back into it. Eddie reflexively batted Nate's hand away as Nate moved Eddie's head to the side.

"Easy , Eddie. " Nate said . "Hey, Doc! When you're finished with our boy there, I've got another patient for you. " Nate turned his attention back to Eddie. "I think you hit your head on the bedside table."

"I'm fine." Eddie said, batting Nate's hand away again.

"Uh-huh. All the same, just chill for a minute."

"Shouldn't you be worried about Brodi?"

"We've got Brodi covered . " Nate said as Pierce finished up with Brodi. "Let the doc look at you. "

Eddie realized he wasn't being given much choice as Nate moved out of the way and Pierce moved in, shining a pen light in his eyes one at a time. " After asking the standard "check for concussion" questions , the doctor declared him OK with the standard "call me if " caveats.

"Now , I've taken a room here for this weekend until the storm blows over. If any of you need anything, don't hesitate to come get me. "

"Don't worry, Pierce. I'll keep an eye on things. You'll know the second we'll need you. "

"Make sure it happens that way. Now , " he fumbled around in his bag some more and pulled out a disposable ice pack. He squeezed the center until it burst and the entire thing started getting cold. "You might want to hold that on that lump, son."

Eddie took it without saying a word, then rather sulky applied it to his injury as he watched Pierce gather his supplies, check his main patient once more, then took his exit. 

"How is he? " Eddie asked when Elise meet his eyes. 

"He'll be fine."

Eddie looked up at Nate, who was standing in front of him with his arms crossed. "So that. .."

"That is exactly the kind of stuff Brodi was protecting you from, dude . He wasn't trying to push you away. He just stayed to himself when he felt likely to get triggered ."

"So when he feels like he can handle being around people he tries . And my constantly making excuses. .."

"Didn't exactly help, no."

"Gee, thanks. "

Nate shrugged . "You asked. 

"I told him. ..I told him I'd rather stay in the dark. Do you think he'll forgive me? "

"Do you still want to stay in the dark? "

Eddie shook his head. "I want to help him. But I don't know how. "

Nate thought for a minute, then turned to Elise. "You think you've got the situation under control, princess ? "

"Yeah. " She said quietly, before kissing Brodi's forehead. Then she stood and walked over to Nate, giving him a huge hug. "Thank you so much for keeping him safe . "

"Hey, he'd do it for any of us. Now, I'm going to get Fuzzy here a drink. Want me to bring you back something? 

"No, I'm fine. I'll call if I need something. You two should get some rest, too."

Eddie stood and Nate started pulling him to the door. "Seriously. You need anything. Any. Thing."

"Got it. Now go!"


	11. Chapter 11

"WHY are you looking at me like that? "

Eddie and Nate had just taken a table at The Gravitude and Nate had a perplexing look on his face. 

"I'm weighing the consequences of giving someone with a head injury a beer verses refusing one to someone who most likely needs one. "

"Dude, I've gotten worse on the slopes. Besides, it's been, what, almost an hour now. I got a slight bump. I don't have a concussion."

"OK. ONE beer.,

"One beer. Fine . "

They placed their order and sat in silence for a while. Eddie really didn't know what to say, and Nate seemed content to let him sit in silence. Finally Eddie broke the silence. 

"What did Pierce have to say? "

"The usual. He'd prefer Brodi get evaluated at the hospital behavioral unit, but, it's not like anyone's making any trips tonight. "

Eddie nodded, "And what do you think? "

Nate took a sip of his beer and studied Eddie for a moment. "I think that if he wakes up coherent, we can let him make that decision. He knows he has PTSD. He usually manages it pretty well. This stalking thing is still fresh. It's brought up a lot of ugly memories for him. He just need to regroup. "

Eddie nodded. "I never realized until today just how bad it must have been. Even after Lauryl showed up, I think I just assumed it was a college crush gone overboard. I never realized..." Eddie's eyes went wide. "The scars on his arms...she did that, didn't she? "

Nate nodded but said nothing. 

"Man. I.." Eddie sighed, took a swig of his beer, then took a deep breath to start again. "I'm going to be honest here. It's going to sound douchey, and you can punch me in the face afterwards. "

Nate narrowed his gaze . "OK."

"When I look at someone Brodi's size. ..he's huge, he's built like a tank..and I think about them being victimized, especially so violently...it honestly scares the hell out of me. I mean, look at me. It wouldn't take much to take me down. "

"Maybe not. .."

"That's not encouraging. And as far as his PTSD, how do I know how to not trigger it? What if I touch him in a way that flips him out? How do I know what his triggers are? I've already made the situation worse, how do I keep it out of the toilet? What do I I'll..."

"Whoa, slow down, dude. As far as the first thing, I can't answer to that. I could walk outside right now and fall off a cliff or get hit by a car. .."

"Again, not encouraging. "

"My point is, sometimes random things happen. All we can do is keep our eyes open. None of this is Brodi's fault. He didn't ask for Miss Fatal Attraction."

"I didn't say I was blaming him. I said I was uncomfortable."

"Uncomfortable is heaven compared to what he's going through. Now, as far as knowing what triggers him, just ask him. I'm sure he'd rather tell you than flip out on you."

"But he's never talked about any of this before. "

"SHE JUST SHOWED UP A MONTH AGO. Stop bringing your ego into this. "

Edie looked down, realizing he was acting like a jilted friend again. 

"So...what do I do? "

"Do you really regret telling him you'd rather stay in the dark? "

"Yes. " He said without hesitation. 

"Then prove it to him, "


	12. Chapter 12

Brodi was just becoming aware of his surroundings and could tell by the heaviness in his body that he was coming out of a drug haze. He knew he didn't like the feeling, but was not yet conscious enough to put a concrete "why" to it. He was in his own room, that much he could tell just by the smell. The scent of sandalwood was in the air, and he took in a deep breath, hoping it would help clear his head faster.

"You waking up, my man? Whoa, whoa, easy. It's just me."

Brodi struggled to sit up, startled by a male voice in his room. Looking to his right, he breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Eddie approaching his bed.

"You probably should lay back down for a little bit. I don't know what Doc gave you last night, but you went out pretty fast. Might take some time to get your bearings."

"Doc was here last night? Wait. YOU were here last night? Uhm, why are you here now? Where is Elise?" He sat up again, alarmed, but Eddie pushed him back down. "Where is she? Did I hurt her? Please tell me I didn't hurt her?"

"Now, what did I tell you? Chill. One thing at a time. No, you haven't hurt anyone. Nate made Elise go get some breakfast. They didn't want you waking up alone so they asked me to sit with you..

Brodi seemed to relax once assured that no one was hurt, so Eddie returned to the chair where he'd been flipping through a magazine. No sooner had his butt hit the chair than Brodi was pushing himself up again.

"Dude..."

"Eddie, I can't lay down all day. I'll take it slow, I promise. Just..."

"OK. At least take a few sips of water before you try to stand."

Brodi rolled his eyes, but obediently took the bottle of water that Eddie had pointed to on the nightstand. He opened the bottle and took a couple of slow sips while eying Eddie silently. 

"So, how are you, buddy?" Brodi asked when he finally spoke.

"Says the man who just endured a physical and psychological emergency 12hrs ago."

Brodi raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

"All right already. I get the point. I'm...can I be honest here?"

"I expect nothing less than honesty."

"I'm...well, I'm worried, Bro. I don't like it that you've had to go through this enough lately that you just can be so extremely casual the next day. Maybe the sedatives are still wearing off..."

"How do you think I should act, Eddie? Most of last night is blank for me. Yes, I'm upset that I lost it like that. And I'm sorry you had to witness it..."

"That's not what I meant. Yes, it was scary. I've never seen anything remotely like that. I have no frame of reference. But you needed help, and I came without hesitation when Nate told me what was going on."

Brodi looked down for a moment then took another sip of water.

"I didn't just randomly snap, Eddie. There was a lot leading up to it, and there were cues I should have caught myself. I guess I just really wanted to be normal for a while. So I ignored my own trigger warnings."

"Brodi, you ARE normal. And I'm really sorry for any part I've had in making you feel otherwise. I talked to Nate last night, and I realized that part of my fear was just my own fight or flight response. And man, let me tell you, I can't fight. But that doesn't excuse how I've treated you."

"Eddie, . I don't blame you for..."

"I blame MYSELF, Brodi. So, if you will, when you're feeling better and not coming out of a drug hangover, could we sit and talk? You tell me what you need from me. You tell me how to help you. Can we do that?"

Brodi smiled. "I think we can manage that. Can I ask you one thing?"

"Of course."

"Are you going to freak out if I get out of bed now and walk to the bathroom? Because I REALLY need to go in there."


	13. Chapter 13

Elise opened the door slowly and peeked in, catching Eddie's eye before she stepped in. She looked to the empty bed then back to Eddie.

"Bathroom." He said simply.

Elise nodded as she handed him a bag. "Bagels." She explained. "I thought you guys might be hungry." She sat on the bed and glanced towards the bathroom. "So how is he?"

The bathroom door opened before Eddie could answer.

"Hey! You're back!"

"Hey, sweetie." Elise stood and hugged Brodi, then held him at arms' length. "How do you feel?"

"Embarrassed." He admitted. "And yes, I know, not my fault. Doesn't change how I feel."

"Duly noted. Now sit, eat. I brought back bagels. Grab one before Eddie eats them all."

"Hey, I like bagels, but I don't like them that much." Eddie said with his mouth full.

Brodi laughed, but grew serious as he took a good look at Eddie. "Hey, what's with the egg on your head?" His head was clearer now as more of the sedatives left his system. "You said I didn't hurt anybody."

"YOU didn't. I fell and hit your beside table. All on me, dude. Pierce already looked at it. And egg? It's not THAT big."

Brodi looked from Eddie to Elise, and Elise nodded. "It's true. You didn't lay a hand on him. You stood up quickly and he fell moving out of your way."

Brodi looked doubtful.

"Scout's honor."

Brodi shrugged and sat down. "You were never a scout."


End file.
